Sunday Service
TITLE: Pray and Get Results
SCRIPTURE:
1 JOHN 5:14-15 (NKJV) - 14 Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. 15 And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.
INTRODUCTION:
The first sentence says that “This is the confidence that we have in Him…” We know from Hebrews 11:1 (NIV) – “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for”
When we come to God in prayer, we must come trusting in Him, trusting that He will do it. Having the confidence / faith that He alone will do it for you. We are not coming to fulfill all righteousness. We are coming to get results. We are coming to Him so that we can change our circumstances.
1 John 5:14 says “that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.” The word “according to His will” has thrown the church community to a world of confusion. Some Christians pray “if it be your will” or end their prayer saying “according to your will”. Sometimes, it is said intentionally so that if you don’t get the answer then you can place the blame on God. You will tell people that God didn’t want to do it in the first place. For you and I to understand God’s will, we have to go to the bible.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 (AMP) - All Scripture is God-breathed [given by divine inspiration] and is profitable for instruction, for conviction [of sin], for correction [of error and restoration to obedience], for training in righteousness [learning to live in conformity to God’s will, both publicly and privately—behaving honorably with personal integrity and moral courage]; 17 so that the [a]man of God may be complete and proficient, outfitted and thoroughly equipped for every good work.
God’s will is found in the bible. So it is imperative that before we pray, we must search the bible for the scripture that is best suited for the prayer request or requests.
Luke 11:1-2 (NKJV) – “Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.”. So He said to them, “When you pray, say:
Our[a] Father [b]in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
[c]Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Jesus was teaching His disciples how to pray to get results each time. When you come to pray, you should praise God for who He is. Praise God for His faithfulness.
Psalm 100:4 (NLT) – “Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name
We need to know that Praise brings us through the gates of heaven and brings us into the right place where God is (the throne room). Moreover, Jesus who is our example did the same thing. He taught the disciples and so He must lead by example.
John 11:39-43 (NKJV) - Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of him who was dead, said to Him, “Lord, by this time there is a stench, for he has been dead four days.” Jesus said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?” 41 Then they took away the stone [d]from the place where the dead man was lying. And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. 42 And I know that You always hear Me, but because of the people who are standing by I said this, that they may believe that You sent Me.” 43 Now when He had said these things, He cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth!” 44 And he who had died came out bound hand and foot with graveclothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Loose him, and let him go.”
We can see that Jesus praised God then He made His requests.
If we have not seen the answer to some of our prayer requests, we need to go back to understand if we really believe or have faith in God.
“Your Kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” We have established that His will is His Word and we know from Isaiah 55:11 (NKJV) - So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me [a]void. But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.
The word of God when it is sent forth, it must accomplish, and it must do what it says. So going back to “Your Kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” The scripture is telling us, for you and I to see the Kingdom of God happen here on earth, we must hold onto the word of God. The word of God brings forth what has been created in heaven and releases it on the earth.
Look at Luke 11:3 (KJV) – “Give us day by day our daily bread” This tells us that we are dependent on God for our daily needs. In addition, this also brings forth a similarity with 1 John 5:15 – “And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.”We can ask for whatever but it has to be found in His Word (the Bible).
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